The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has announced a 16-member squad for the upcoming ODI series against Sri Lanka. Opener Naim Sheikh has returned to the squad, while Soumya Sarkar has been left out due to injury. Naim was dropped from the national team after the 2023 Asia Cup. Since then, he has made a strong comeback with a flurry of runs in domestic cricket, earning a return to the national side after nearly two years.
Speaking about Naim’s selection, Chief Selector Gazi Ashraf Hossain Lipu said,
“Usually, we keep three openers in the squad. Considering that, when we had to make a decision, we chose Naim Sheikh as the best-performing player at the moment.”
On the other hand, Lipu sent a strong message to Soumya Sarkar. He explained the decision not to include him, citing both injury and recent form.
“Soumya Sarkar is an important cricketer. He has 10 years of international experience. We expect him to stay prepared by aligning with recent performance standards. We want him to play a significant role in the team’s overall success in the long run. We haven’t forgotten him, but he needs to step up further based on merit.”
He also added,
“We want to utilize this entire period ahead of the Asia Cup — starting with the Sri Lanka series, followed by home matches against Pakistan, and then the series against India — to thoroughly assess the players we need to evaluate.”
